Rep. Tim Murphy (R., Pa.), the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation, introduced a wide-ranging mental health care bill that would change the way mental illness is treated.

The “Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act of 2013” is the result of a nearly year-long examination of the nation’s mental health care system by the Pennsylvania psychologist and the subcommittee in the aftermath of last year’s school shooting in Connecticut. The man identified as the shooter, Adam Lanza, killed 20 elementary school students and six adults before killing himself last December.

The bill introduced Thursday is a wide-ranging reform proposal that looks at everything from mental-health research to the shortage of mental-health-care providers, especially for children and teenagers where early intervention is critical.

Among the key components, the bill would create a new assistant secretary for mental-health and substance-use disorders in the Department of Health and Human Services. That position, Mr. Murphy said, would be tasked in part with examining all elements of mental-health-care treatment and funding.

A second facet of the bill would clarify what kind of information treatment specialists could share with families. Witnesses said during testimony before the subcommittee that the Health Insurance Portability and accountability Act, or HIPAA, was often quoted by doctors and others in denying families information on treatment. Families said they were often locked out of helping with treatment plans as a result.

“If you had a loved one who had a heart attack or was in an auto accident or unconscious, that doctor would talk to you about that person,” Mr. Murphy said Thursday. “If you have someone who is seriously mentally ill in the other room, that doctor won’t tell you anything. Nor will that doctor ask history from you.”

The bill also looks at how Medicaid benefits are is used. Right now, there are restrictions on how many visits to a doctor a patient can have, as well as on certain kinds of medication that are used in treating mental-health problems.

Mr. Murphy said money to fund these changes could come from redirecting funds that are going to programs that aren’t working. He also pointed out that state and local governments are continuing to spend the money for mental-health care, but doing it through their jails and prisons where many of the mentally ill are now landing. He noted that his home state once had 20 psychiatric hospitals and eight prisons. That number has reversed to 8 hospitals and 20 prisons, he said.

The introduction of the bill follows an announcement earlier this week by Vice President Joe Biden to make $100 million available to increase access to mental-health services and improve mental-health facilities.

Mr. Murphy, who was joined by fellow representatives Leonard Lance (R., N.J.) and Bill Cassidy (R., La.), said he was hopeful the bill would move forward quickly. “Unfortunately, Congress sometimes moves slowly unless there is a crisis that motivates somebody. I don’t want to wait until the next crisis. I don’t want to wait until the next headline or the next set of funerals.”

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